This is What I Want
by Selacha
Summary: After Finn is nearly killed during an adventure gone wrong, Marceline comes to realize she has feelings for the hero. Marceline is willing to do anything to keep Finn from dying and leaving her like every other mortal she's ever known. ANYTHING. -Rated T, FxM pairing. ON HIATUS UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I really have no reason to explain why I wrote this one. I've been reading a couple AT stories lately, and the plot just jumped into my head and I ran with it. My first AT fanfic, and it's heavily Finnceline. The story will be from Marceline's point of view, except for the prologue. Rated T because I'm paranoid. Read and enjoy!**

"**Speech"**

_**'Thought'**_

"_**Marceline's Subconscious"**_

**Disclaimer: I don't own Adventure Time, and I'm fine with that. The real owners seem to be doing a pretty good job with it.**

* * *

_…__The warrior limped wearily along the dirt road leading up to the giant tree. Though the 'dirt road' was quickly becoming more of a 'mud road' as the ceaseless rain beat upon it. Normally, the skies over the Grasslands south of the Candy Kingdom were clear and sunny. But today the azure blanket had been covered by a thick layer of angry gray storm-clouds, drenching any traveler unlucky enough to be out in the Glob-forsaken weather, and turning the early afternoon into full on midnight..._

Jake the Dog sat on the couch in the tree house's large living room, wrapped in a large green blanket, playing a game of _Compy's Castle_ on the living video game console BMO. But his heart wasn't in it, and the magical dog kept glancing out the window into the thick darkness of a terrible storm.

"I hope Finn's okay, BMO." Jake said, turning his attention back towards the tiny robot settled on the floor. "This storm is pretty nasty. I'm worried he might get all gronked up."

"I'm sure he's fine, Jake." Responded the console, the image of a pixelated castle replaced by a simple face. "Finn is the best hero in Ooo! No storm is going to beat him all up."

"Yeah... But he's been gone five days! He said that the ogre nest would only take like a day to clear out." Jake looked out the window again, hoping for a sign of his bro. "What if something happened to him?"...

…_As the warrior got closer to the giant tree house, the slower he went. His left leg was flopping behind him, trailing a steady stream of crimson. He was using a giant red broadsword as a crutch, helping to keep him upright. The rain bounced like hammers off of his now-not-so-much-white bear hat, feeling like the time he had been pummeled by the tiny blacksmiths of the Pixie Kingdom. As he passed through the front yard and went by the well that led to the Beneathoverse, land of the gnomes, he stumbled and fell. A hiss of pain left his scraped and bleeding lips as he landed on his side, reopening a large cut along his ribs. With -almost- inhuman strength he pushed himself upright and managed to make it to the door set into the bark of his tree. He knocked once, twice, before slumping against the wooden portal..._

Jake jumped out of his seat when he heard someone knocking against the front door.

"Who's visiting in this weather?" He mused to himself as he stretched his body, his front end twisting around furniture and down the ladders to the ground floor before his feet and tail-end caught up with him. The front room was full of glittering treasure, containing enough wealth to buy half of Ooo if the pair wanted. But Finn mostly liked to just pile it up as 'dragon bait'. He kept a large fire-proof net tucked in the corner, just waiting for the chance to catch a new magma-spewing pet.

Jake ignored the fortunes piled about him and walked up to the front door, and saw a shadow leaning up against it from the outside. He puffed himself up to twice his normal size and turned his hands into a mace and pickaxe.

"Who's out there? I'm warning you, I've got a pickaxe-hand and I'm not afraid to use it!" The yellow dog pulled the door open with his stretchy ear, but was surprised by what he saw. He had been expecting a ninja, or an assassin cat, or even the Ice King having a goof on him. What he wasn't expecting was to see his human brother, Finn, fall forward onto the floor at his feet.

"Finn!" Jake immediately morphed back into his standard cuddly self and picked his brother up. Jake was lucky he was a super-strong magical dog, or he wouldn't have been able to lift the human boy. When he was young, Finn had been a tiny ball of energy, always a mass of gangly limbs and joints. But when he had grown older, his body had also grown to contain all that bombastic energy. The 19 year old hero was six feet tall now, and had become very fit and muscular from all the adventuring over the years. The family sword, once looking comically huge slung across his back, now looked perfectly sized when at his waist, even if it was now lying on the floor.

Finn's eyes blinked open, revealing one to be black and bloodshot but both to be sparkly blue. He smiled a little, showing off a split lip.

"Hey... Jake. Sorry I... took so long. Wasn't an ogres' nest..." His eyes closed again and Jake shook his brother, trying to keep him awake.

"Finn! Finn, wake up man, this isn't cool! What happened, what beat the stuffing out of ya'?!"

Finn grumbled and managed to squeak out the words, "...stone giants..." before he passed out. It was only then that Jake noticed the blood pooling on the floor.

"Don't worry Finn, I'll get help!" He carried the unconscious human up to their bedroom and laid him down on top of the mass of monster skins that Finn used as a blanket. After placing him down, Jake raced for their first-aid kit. He grabbed the white bag and pulled out bandages, iodine, alcohol swabs, needle & thread, and all manner of other medical supplies until he found what he was looking for. Jake pulled out a small bottle with a tear drop on it, holding it up triumphantly.

"Hang on, Finn! I've got the cyclops' magical eye goo!" He raced back upstairs, the mass of other supplies still tacked onto his skin as he managed to skid to a stop before crashing into the sleeping human. Jake began to pull off Finn's clothes so he could inspect the wounds. First came Finn's hat, revealing a mop of golden blond hair sullied by dirt and blood. Then came his almost-too-large black hoodie, perfect and unmarred as always. It was magical, after all. Next came the blue shirt that he kept wearing long after childhood was over. Jake paled as he took in the long cut, poorly stitched and still bleeding, along Finn's ribs. It looked like he had sewn it up himself. A few dozen smaller cuts lined his torso and back, but none as serious as the large one. Next came the blue pants.

A few years ago, the duo had found an underground cavern filled with pre-Mushroom War crates and boxes. Two dozen crates had held a ton of pants made of a durable, blue material. Finn had taken an immediate liking to them, swapping them out from the shorts he used to wear everywhere. "I don't know who this 'Levi' guy was, but he made some flippin' awesome pants!" Finn had laughed, reading the name tag sewn on to each and every pair. The jeans had shrunken a little to cling to Finn's legs from the rain, but Jake pulled them off anyway, and was almost sorry he hadn't. Finn's left leg was broken below the knee, the end of the bone poking through the skin, causing blood to pour steadily from the wound. His ankle was swollen and red, looking infected. The wounds seemed to stop before reaching Finn's pristine white boxers, sparing Jake the discomfort of having to check him for even more damage. The underwear was also magical, a gift from a Laundry Witch, that would stay forever clean. Though they had gotten a little torn up around the edges, like the rest of his outfit. Finn seemed to have lost his shoes on the way home, and had taken off his socks. His feet were cut and scraped, but not badly.

Overall, Finn was in really bad shape. But it could have been much, _much_, worse. Jake propped Finn up as best he could, then pulled out the tears. "You're gonna be alright in just a second, okay buddy?" Jake decided to heal the cut on the chest first. He pulled the stopper from the bottle and tilted it over Finn's chest.

Nothing came out.

Jake was stunned, then groaned as a memory came back. He and Finn had used up the last of the tears to keep a Snow Golem from melting when it played with lava wolves. It had made the golem un-meltable, so that was a good deed done. But now, there were no tears left for Finn!

So Jake had to make do with standard medical supplies. Luckily, or unluckily depending on how you looked at it, both of them had gotten very good at patching up wounds over the years. He swabbed the cut on Finn's chest with the alcohol wipes, disinfecting the wound. He took the needle and thread and made sure Finn was really out cold; this wouldn't be pleasant if he was awake. Jake quickly and efficiently stitched up the wound, cutting loose the thread Finn had used to try and close the cut. It looked like he had torn it form his shirt. Once the stitches were tight, Jake bandaged the cut and wrapped a length of gauze around Finn's chest. He swabbed the rest of the human's smaller injuries, but was at a loss as for what to do to the leg. He could staunch the bleeding, but he didn't know how to set such a severely broken leg. He decided to call Bubblegum; she had a whole castle full of doctors to boss around. She'd know what to do.

Making sure Finn was as comfortable as he could, Jake stretched back downstairs to grab his phone. He punched in Bubblegum's number as fast as he could, and the princess answered on the second ring.

"Hello Jake! What's going on?" Jake could hear the sounds of some experiment growling in the background.

"PB, Finn's hurt real bad! He got beaten by some stone giants, and he needs a doctor. I can't move him, can you get Doctor Ice Cream or Doctor Princess over here?"

"_What?!_" She screeched."Why didn't you tell me sooner? I'll get the whole royal physician's entourage to the tree house as soon as I can. Just hang on, we'll be there soon and- _Cinnamon Bun! Put down the radioactive chocolate souffle! _-Sorry Jake, I'll send the doctors on ahead! I'll be there as soon as I get this under control! _Auf wiedersehen!_" Princess Bubblegum hung up, and Jake swore he heard something bubbling and laughing maniacally in the background. Jake went back upstairs to check on Finn, and saw that the hero was shaking and covered in a cold sweat. Jake felt Finn's forehead and immediately pulled his hand away from the feverish heat.

"Oh man..." Jake tucked Finn in under the blankets, hoping the heat would help break the fever. "Hang on bro, you're gonna be fine..."

* * *

Marceline the Vampire Queen was sleeping peacefully, floating a couple of inches above her deep purple bedspread. She woke up slowly to the smell of something sizzling. _'Mmm... is that bacon?'_ She wondered sleepily, before registering the burning sensation across her stomach. _'Wait a second... THAT'S ME!' _Marceline shrieked and dove to the floor, out of the pitiful ray of sunlight fluttering through the window.

"Oh Glob, that was stupid."

After calming down a little, she took in the damage the sunlight had caused. A slight burn marred the top of her smooth gray stomach, but was already healing. She yawned mightily, revealing her long pointed fangs and forked tongue. Scratching the sleep from her eyes, Marceline floated to her bathroom to take a shower. Ditching the half-torn gray shirt and shorts she used as pajamas, Marceline washed away the last of her sleeping mind and carefully rubbed aloe onto the already fading burn. Drying off afterward, she looked out the window to judge the time. A slight crescent of red sun was sitting on the horizon, at just the right angle to send its rays into her bedroom.

"Hmm. Sunset already." She sighed, and collapsed -sort of, she was still floating- onto her bed. She had slept for almost 20 hours straight. But then again, she was beat. She had spent the last three days exploring the Beneathoverse. Those weird little gnomes sure knew how to fight! Honestly, she was just looking to pass the time until her friend got back.

Her friend.

Finn.

Marceline laughed as she went to find something to wear. How she, the immortal, thousand-year-old Vampire Queen, had become friends with a mortal -and a human at that!- was beyond her. But he was her friend, and Marceline hated to admit how fun he was to have around, and how bored she got when he was away. And as much fun as it was to mess with him, Marceline did have a soft spot for the little guy.

She chewed her bottom lip, looking over towards where she could just make out the top of Finn's tree house. He had left a little while ago to go on an adventure to slay a nest of ogres terrorizing a village of Rock Candy People. Jake had stayed behind when Finn decided he wanted to go on a 'radical solo adventure'. She had been over at the tree house, freaking out Jake with her demon faces, when he decided to go. He had said goodbye to the two of them, then set out laughing, saying he'd be back the next day. That had been almost a week ago...

Marceline shook away the feelings of dread coiling in her gut as she pulled on a pair of black and white striped tights. _'Finn will be fine.'_ She thought. "He WILL be fine." She said it again, out loud, to help convince herself. She dropped a long gray shirt carelessly over her head, where it settled and reached mid-thigh. A burgundy belt and her red boots finished the ensemble. Grabbing her bass guitar she slung it across her back and floated back towards the window.

"Maybe... maybe I'll go visit the tree house. See if he's home yet."

_"__Aww, you do care."_ Said a little voice in her head.

"Shut up. He amuses me, and I don't want to look for a new toy when this one's perfectly trained." She said back to herself halfheartedly. It was kind of a weird habit, talking to herself, but it helped with conquering one thousand years of loneliness.

_"__Right. That's why you're always hanging out with him."_

"No! I only-"

_"__And are always hugging him and using any excuse to get close."_

"Well, I-"

_"__And why you keep kissing him."_

Marceline was blushing furiously at her own traitorous thoughts. "I do that because it's funny to see him blush and stutter every time I do it!" She all but yelled to herself. It was true, though; she did kiss Finn a lot. Quick pecks to his cheek, his forehead... his lips. And every time, without fail, he'd fall over, blush wildly, and sputter nonsensical sounds until Marceline couldn't hold in her laughter anymore before helping him back up. It had gone on for the last 4 years she'd known him, and it never got old.

Finally, Marceline cooled off upon remembering the fact that she was arguing with her own subconscious. "I don't have to explain anything to you, you stupid brain. Especially not my **friendship **with Finn." Marceline emphasized the word 'friendship'. She '_hmmph'_ed and floated out the front door leading to her cave, pausing to grab her purple parasol to ward off the last bit of sunlight. Flying through the open cave mouth into the grass fields surrounding the Grasslands, Marceline inhaled the fresh air. She didn't need to breathe, not really, but the scent was still refreshing. Gently floating in the breeze, Marceline could still taste the storm from last night in the air.

Lost in thoughts about Finn, (_"Ha-ha! Told you you cared about him!" _the tiny voice mocked.) Marceline almost tripped over the two gumdrop people running through the grass.

"Come on! Come on! We need to see him!" The pair were laden with a heavy gift basket and a folded blanket that looked hand-knitted. Marceline shook her head, wondering at the eccentricities of candy people. A few more feet floated by and she saw Stanley the Watermelon, looking like he was headed in the same direction as the gumdrop people. He had a large bag of seeds next to him, tied with a bright blue bow.

"Okay, that's... kinda weird." She wouldn't admit it to anyone, but Stanley kind of freaked her out. Anyone that quiet had to be trouble.

Going forward, Marceline saw more and more people rushing in the same direction as she was going. Most carried gifts or presents, some holding cards and baskets of food. Marceline caught sight of the red and white striped form of the most powerful necromancer she knew on the edges of the crowd, and swooped down to pick him up.

"Hey! Put me down this instant!"

"Chill, PepBut! It's me, Marceline."

Peppermint Butler looked up to see himself held tightly in Marceline's grasp above the crowd and relaxed considerably. "Lady Marceline, a pleasure to see you."

"You too, Peppermint Butler. Hey, do you know where all these people are going?"

"They're on their way to visit with Master Finn, of course. Though I doubt they'll get through the banana guards..."

"Finn's back?! Since when?" Marceline was relieved beyond belief that he was alright. Though she was a little hurt he hadn't called to let her know he was back... _"You're in Llloooov-"_ Marceline slapped her head to stop the annoying thoughts.

"He arrived home yesterday during the storm, though I don't think he's woken up yet."

Apprehension formed a knot in her gut, and she didn't know why. "Why wouldn't he have woken up yet?"

"Didn't you hear the news?" Marceline shook her head. "Finn was badly injured fighting off an entire nest of stone giants. He managed to get home, but he's still very ill."

If Marceline had any blood left in her body, it would all have drained from her face. "I need to see him! Sorry Peps, I have to go!" Marceline dropped the round candy mint into the mass of candy people, where he immediately began crowd-surfing. Two large banana guards stood at attention at the front door, keeping the mob outside the tree house. Marceline became invisible and floated through an open window, then had to dodge as Nurse Poundcake ran up the ladder on the wall carrying a large bag over her shoulder.

The vampire followed the pastry up into the highest reaches of the tree*. She entered Finn and Jake's bedroom to find it a hive of activity. Doctors Ice Cream and Princess, the two greatest medical minds in Ooo, were leaning over a bed, while a number of nurses ferried supplies to and from the group. Marceline's stomach grumbled mightily when a scent she hadn't smelled in years filled her nostrils: _human blood_. The source of the stench was the human boy laid out on his bed. Marceline gasped softly, and had to put a hand over her mouth to keep from crying out.

Finn looked terrible.

He was a mass of bruises and cuts small enough not to warrant any attention. A large wad of bandages covered his left ribs, and a sturdy cast covered his left leg. More bandages were wrapped around his head, and an ice pack was on his eye. Marceline, completely against her nature, just wanted to gather the hero up into her arms and cuddle him until he was well again. But she knew that she should wait until Finn wasn't so badly wounded.

Marceline waited for three hours while the medical staff patched Finn up as best they could. They left his room instructing Jake, who hadn't left his brother's side the whole time, to keep the boy in bed and make sure he took his painkillers when he was awake.

Marceline flinched as they listed off the numerous injuries Finn had sustained fighting the giants: Three broken ribs and a bruised lung, a broken femur, a twisted ankle that had become infected and inflamed, a concussion and possible permanent damage to his right shoulder. They presumed this last malady was the result of swinging his sword hard enough to cut through the giants' stony hides. Once Jake had finally given in to his exhaustion and climbed into his drawer-bed, Marceline became visible again.

She floated down and settled into a wooden chair at the side of his bed. Marceline tentatively reached out a hand and stroked the fallen hero's forehead, trailing her fingers through his soft golden hair and down his face. Her icy cold hand must have been soothing to his fevered skin, because Finn smiled in his sleep and nuzzled his cheek into her cupped hand. Marceline felt like crying, then, seeing such a great man brought so low. But she fought the urge; one thousand years of showing no weaknesses left some long-lasting habits. She continued to stroke his face throughout the night, pulling his blankets tighter around him whenever his uneasy sleep knocked them loose. Finally, at dawn just as the sun was coming up, she stood to go hide in the guest room that she had designated as 'hers'. But as she was leaving, she heard Finn whisper something in his sleep. If she didn't have her supernatural hearing she would have missed it.

But she heard it clear as day. Finn had said, in his sleep, one word: _"Marceline..."_

* * *

***That was the single most nonsensical sentence I've ever written. **

**So, here's hoping that you've all become intrigued enough to wait for the next chapter. I'm thinking maybe four or five for this particular story, with them all being Marceline POV. Goodbye for now, please remember to review if you liked it or have any suggestions.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Alright, chapter 2! So, I'm just going to apologize in advance if any of the characters (especially Marceline) seem OOC. I just can't really see her being emotional, like, at all. So I might have to tweak her personality a little to fit the storyline here. Okay, now that that's out of the way, let's read all about Marceline taking care of a sick Finn! Yay!**

**Disclaimer: I am not Pendelton Ward. So, this isn't my show.**

"**Speech"**

_**'Thought'**_

"_**Marceline's Subconscious"**_

* * *

Marceline was stunned. Finn had just... _called out her name?_

She floated back towards his bed, when the eye not covered by the ice pack slowly cracked open. He smiled weakly, reopening a split on his lower lip.

"Hey Marcie... wasn't sure if you heard me."

"Finn! You're awake. How are you feeling?" Marceline floated closer to the ground to be on the same level as Finn, staring with concern at his face.

"I kind of feel like I just got squashed by a nest of stone giants." He chuckled a little, then winced at the influx of pain in his chest.

"That's not funny you butt! Do you have any idea how worried I was?" Marceline slugged him playfully on his good shoulder, but immediately regretted it when he winced anyway. "Oh Glob, Finn, I'm so sorry!"

"Hey, it's alright. Just not used to being beaten up by vampire dames while I'm sick. Hey, why are you here anyway? It's almost daytime. Did you spend the night here?"

Marceline reddened a little at the question. "Umm, yeah... I guess. I came over as soon as I heard you were back."

Finn closed his eyes again and struggled into a sitting position against his headboard. Marceline helped steady him until he was stable. "Oh Glob, I feel terrible. My... **everything** hurts. Especially my leg."

"Oh, um..." Marceline remembered the doctors saying he needed painkillers when he woke up. She went over to the table, avoiding the still snoozing Jake, and dug through the mess of bandages and other supplies until she found a bottle of clear liquid. The label read off a lot of doctor jargon, but the important words were "Patient Name: the Human, Finn", "pain relief", "two teaspoons every eight hours" and "may cause drowsiness".

Marceline carried the bottle and a spoon back over to the resting hero. She settled back into the chair and nudged Finn back awake. "Hey, open up."

He groaned groggily. "What's that stuff?"

"Pain medicine. It'll make you feel better."

He opened his mouth, and Marceline poured out two spoonfuls and poured them down his throat. She couldn't help but laugh at the disgusted grimace that crossed his face once the medicine was swallowed. "Ugh, that stuff tastes nastier than candy zombies."

Marceline raised an eyebrow. "And how do you know what those taste like? Finn?"

He looked away sheepishly. "I... kinda got curious when the last outbreak happened. I nibbled a little bit of zombie flesh before jumping into the crowd covered in the antidote. That was crazy awesome, though."

"Dude, that is just nasty. Seriously. Nasty." She mimed gagging, and Finn laughed again. Marceline smiled, and reached out to stroke his hair again. He froze at her touch, then sighed in comfort. "Hey, Marceline?"

"Yeah?"

"Were you doing that all night?"

Marceline stiffened and reddened again. "Umm... no." She was too embarrassed to admit that she had been stroking his cheek all night.

"Oh. I thought you might have been, 'cause of the dream I had last night."

Was Finn dreaming about her? That was a little weird, even if she **did **have a crush on the human. Which she didn't.

"What were you dreaming about?"

Finn settled deeper into the covers as she kept stroking his cheek. "I was dreaming about my Mom."

"Um, no offense Finn, but aren't you an orphan?"

"Yeah, but I meant Jake's and my Mom. She and Dad found me in the forest. Whenever any of us were sick, she'd sit with us and pat our heads and stroke our hair until we fell asleep. I dreamt that she was here again, like when I was little."

Marceline felt a little uncomfortable hearing Finn talk like this. Whenever he got all deep and soul-searchy it reminded her that beneath the appearance of a carefree adventurer lay an abandoned child looking for his place in the world. She looked for a way to change the subject.

"What do you mean 'whenever **any** of us were sick', don't you mean you and Jake?"

Finn laughed. "What? Naw, we're just the two youngest. Jake was the runt of a litter of five puppies."

"Really? I didn't know you guys had any other siblings." Marceline was happy she had changed the subject; Finn seemed much happier talking about his adoptive family.

"Yeah, I had three brothers and two sisters. There's Jake, of course, Jermaine's the oldest and Johnny was the middle pup. Mary's my oldest sister and Maddie was born just before Jake."

Marceline was shocked; Finn had all these family members, and only ever hung out with Jake. "Hey, why do you never mention the rest of your family? Wouldn't you like to spend some time with them?"

Finn immediately darkened, and Marceline mentally slapped herself. Before Finn could respond, he was engulfed by a giant pair of stretchy yellow arms.

"FINN! You're awake! Oh buddy, never EVER do something so flipping dangerous again! You nearly gave me a heart attack!" Jake had woken up at the sound of Marceline's fake gagging, and had taken a minute to remember that Finn was sick. Once he had, he all but shoved Marceline out of the way to scoop his wounded brother up. When Finn winced at the contact with his injured body, Jake immediately dropped him back onto the bed.

"Oh, sorry! You're still all messed up. Um, how are you feeling?"

"A little achy, and my leg hurts. But the medicine Marceline gave me is starting to kick in."

Jake glared at Marceline suspiciously. "What medicine?"

"Calm down, dog. You were still sleeping when Finn woke up, so I gave him the pain medicine the doctors prescribed him." She held up the bottle in defense.

"Wait a second... how did you know what to give him when he woke up?" Jake's eyes got all big and shiny. "Oh my Glob! You've been peeping on Finn while he's sick, haven't you? Looking for the perfect time to steal his blood!"

Unfortunately, that was the exact moment Marceline's stomach decided to rumble again. Jake puffed himself up, and stood protectively over his sick brother.

"I'll protect you, buddy! No evil vampire's gonna drink your blood while I'm on guard!"

Before Marceline could say anything to calm Jake down, Finn reached up and started to tickle his ribs. Jake immediately shrank back down and started laughing uncontrollably, rolling around on Finn's bed as the human kept it up with no mercy.

"Jake, are you gonna attack Marceline again if I stop tickling you?" His words could barely be heard over Jake's roaring laughter.

"N-no I-I-I'll st-stop! Ha ha ha ha! Just, just stop t-tickling me!" Finn stopped with the torture, and both of them collapsed, giggling. Marceline just shook her head at the madness. Finn turned his attention back towards the vampire after making sure Jake was too tired to try and fight her.

"Um, I think Tree Trunks dropped off a basket of red apples if you're hungry, Marceline. They're in the kitchen."

"Thanks Finn. I'll grab a few before I hit the hay. I'll see you after the sun goes down, okay?" Marceline couldn't help but pat his cheek one more time before floating up towards the door.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Jake's a pretty good nurse when he's not all spazzed out with fear-brain. This isn't the first time I've been stuck in bed. You should get some sleep. I'll see you later, okay?"

Marceline wondered when Finn had ever been bedridden before, but tucked the question into a back corner of her mind. " 'Night, Finn."

Marceline floated down the ladder into the nook of the tree house they used as a kitchen. Sure enough, a basket of rose red apples had been left on the counter, shining softly in the light. She picked one up in each hand and sucked the red out of the fruit. The apples stayed shining, though they were now a pale stone gray. After draining a dozen apples of their pigmentation, the rumbling hunger in Marceline's stomach brought forth by the smell of Finn's blood subsided. She floated noiselessly past the sleeping forms of Doctor Princess and Doctor Ice Cream, passed out on the couch. She passed by the window, hissing at the sunlight, and saw the huge crowds still wanting to check up on Finn.

_'Wow,'_ thought Marceline. _'I never realized how important Finn was to everyone.'_

_"__That's because he's amazing." _The voice in her head pointed out.

_'Yeah...'_ Marceline thought dreamily. "Wait, no!"

_"__What, you DON'T think he's amazing?"_

"Well, yeah, I suppose he is pretty amazing. He does save all the people in Ooo on a daily basis, and beats down evil a lot."

_"__See? Was that so hard?"_

"Why am I taking this abuse from my own brain?"

_"__Because you know I'm right."_ If a voice in one's head could be considered "smug", the one in Marceline's head definitely was.

Marceline shook off the annoying thoughts and made her way to the small room hidden inside the main trunk of the giant tree. There was absolutely no sunlight inside whatsoever, no matter the time of day. She had decided to make it her own little room whenever she stayed more than a few hours at the tree house. A small futon was covered in blankets, and a small table held a few knick-knacks:

A picture of Marceline's mother and her as a little girl. A bottle containing a tiny manticore she had found flying around one day. Some guitar picks and strings. Her wedding ring, from when she had married the Vampire King before beheading him. And a red flower Finn had given her one day sat in a glass jar. No matter how hungry she got she never drained the flower. It had been a weird gift; one day they had been walking around after Finn threw a band of ninjas out of the Breakfast Kingdom, and he had spotted a bright red flower growing on the side of the road. He had picked it and handed it to her. _"What was that for?"_ she had asked, smelling the bloom. He had just shrugged and said, _"I dunno. Because."_

Marceline was very glad Finn didn't know about this room; even if she was undead, she would die of embarrassment if Finn found out she had kept a flower he probably forgot about that same day. She settled above the bed, setting the pre-war alarm clock she had found a few years ago to go off at sunset again. She hoped Finn would be alright. She scoffed at her own worried thoughts; he could survive less than 12 hours in a guarded tree house filled with doctors and a magical, overprotective big brother. She tossed and turned a little before becoming comfortable in the air, and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

An annoying ringing noise woke Marceline up from her dream. It had been a very pleasant one, too. She had been back in the Vampire Kingdom, waited on by her loyal, adoring subjects, and Finn had been sitting next to her, laughing at all the royal hoopla. She had only noticed as the dream ended that Finn was wearing a crown, and had been as pale as her...

"That's what I get for going down memory lane right before I fall asleep." She grumbled to herself.

_"__Yes, that's all it was. Not your subconscious trying to tell you something important."_

"Shut up." She stretched, popping her back. She floated out of her room, glancing at the windows. The sun was just setting now, and most of the crowds had dispersed. Marceline passed through the living room, and was shocked at the sight of all the gifts spread around the room. There had to be gifts from every kingdom in Ooo. She saw a ton of candy-based gifts, obviously from the Candy Kingdom. A large coconut tree from the Duke and Duchess of Nuts. A crystal statue of Finn from the Crystal Dimension, a gift from the Rainicorns. A punching bag, courtesy of the Marauders. A small storm cloud from the Cloud Kingdom. There was a gift-wrapped goblin butler that caught her interest. The tag read, "To our ailing King Finn, from your loyal subjects in the Goblin Kingdom".

_'Since when is Finn the Goblin King?'_ she wondered. She saw a set of purple robes covered in shiny gold stars, addressed to "Finn the Ultimate Wizard". Marceline even saw a clumsily built ice sculpture of Finn in bed, getting better, from the Ice King. "Oh, Simon," she sighed. The only kingdom that didn't seem to have sent a gift was the Fire Kingdom, which Marceline found odd. Weren't Finn and Flame Princess dating? Although, come to think of it, Marceline hadn't seen FP in a few months now...

The thought of the elemental princess sent a pang of jealousy coursing through Marceline's mind, but she ignored it the best she could. She flew up towards Finn's room again, and peaked in through the trap door. She saw Finn napping in bed, and couldn't see Jake anywhere. She fully entered the room and drifted into the chair set next to his bed, carefully moving the black hoodie slung over the back of the chair. Finn seemed too peaceful to wake up, so Marceline took her guitar off her back and started mindlessly strumming it.

Without really noticing, she had started playing a lullaby she remembered her mother singing when she was sick as a little girl. The words had been lost amongst a thousand years of memories, which broke her heart. But she remembered the tune, which she played now. The song started slow and low, but picked up while gently drifting between the high notes and the low ones. As the song came to an end, she remembered the last few lines of the lullaby:

_"__Sleep now my love, there is nothing to fear... Know that I will always be here..."_

She sang softly, wanting no one to hear her singing such a sappy song, but at the same time wanting it to somehow drift into Finn's subconscious mind. When she was done, Finn shifted in his sleep and Marceline instantly reddened at the thought that Finn had heard her song. But he just shrugged in his sleep and turned towards her. His eyes blinked open sluggishly, and it took him a moment to recognize the face in front of him. When he did, he broke into a sleepy smile and yawned.

"Hey, Marcie. How long have you been there?"

"Just got here a second ago." It had been more like five minutes, but Finn didn't have to know that. "Wondered if you were gonna wake up or not."

Finn grumbled. "I've been sleeping all day. That stupid medicine makes me tired."

"Well, it's be tired or be in pain. Which is it?"

Finn tilted his head in thought for a moment, his gold hair bouncing slightly. Finally, he shrugged. "Sleepy, I guess. Though it barely won out." Marceline laughed at that, and Finn joined in.

"Hey, where's my armor? It was on the chair there." Finn stopped laughing and looked around the room.

"Oh, it's right here." Marceline picked up the black hoodie, and the fading light of the sun illuminated the usually invisible web pattern in a glow of silver. Finn visibly relaxed, and reached out for the jacket. Instead, Marceline turned it over in her hands, staring at the perfect stitching and impeccable craftsmanship of the magical garment. "You still have this old thing?"

"Well, duh. Of course I do. It's indestructible, it never gets dirty or torn, it always fits me. And it's an awesome reminder of our most mathematical adventure together! Remember?"

Marceline did indeed remember the adventure that had brought Finn his magical hoodie armor...

* * *

Two years previous, Marceline had been goofing around the tree house with Finn while Jake was at his puppies' college graduation ceremonies. ("I'm so proud!" he had cried, leaving with Lady Rainicorn.) Marceline and Finn were playing Target Practice; one of them would choose an item to throw and a target to hit. After Finn threw a mug of soup at a soap bubble BMO was chasing and missed horribly, much to BMO's delight, Marceline was laughing hysterically.

"Dude, you suck at throwing things." Finn frowned, then brightened up. "What? Feel good about being such a terrible aim all of a sudden?"

"No, I just remembered it's my turn to choose." Marceline blanched. Finn looked around the room considerately, then grinned. "I challenge you to hit that candle flame," he pointed to a candle set above the ladders leading downstairs. "With... ME!"

"What?!" She had to have heard him wrong.

"You have to throw ME at that candle flame, without hitting the candle!" He grinned like a fool, which he may have been. Marceline sighed, but kind of wanted to see what would happen. So she picked Finn up by the collar of his shirt and the waist of his jeans. She liked the look of the jeans on him, but would never admit it. She took careful aim, closed one eye, and threw Finn at the candle.

He missed the flame by _that_ much. He bounced off the wall above the candle and fell down to the entryway, crashing against every wall and ladder step.

"Finn!" Marceline took off after him, and found Finn's legs and hips sticking out of a pile of treasure. She grabbed his legs and pulled, hard. After a second he popped out, his shoulders stuck in a giant suit of armor. The armor was a large golden torso with large breasts, feathery wings sticking out of the back, and a built-in horned skull helmet adorned with blond pigtails. Marceline freed Finn from the armor, and giggled at the look of embarrassment on his face.

"Hey, uh, Finn? Want to tell me what this is from?" She shook the obviously feminine armor.

"Oh, that's Jake's. It's the Armor of Zelderon. It's super powerful, and makes the wearer impervious to all evil, or something like that. We've had it forever."

"If it's so powerful, why don't you ever wear it?"

"_Hello?_ It's lady armor! I can't wear that, it's embarrassing."

"If you wore some armor, you wouldn't get so banged up all the time, dweeb."

Finn stuck his tongue out at her. "I couldn't find any good armor."

"Well why didn't you say anything? I know a place where we can get you some really cool magical armor."

"Radical! Let's go." Finn jumped up and ran out the door, pausing only to grab his crimson broadsword.

Marceline picked the human up and flew them both over to a large cave near her own. They ducked through the opening and followed a rough path through the earth. As they went forward, the cave started to become boxier and more even. There were also a lot of spider webs, big enough for Finn to get trapped in. He saw a few skeletons hanging form some of them...

Eventually they got to a large overlook, which gave a great view of an ancient ruin. There were two levels, and each was filled with small buildings with glass fronts and signs. A few stands stood scattered about the rubbish strewn floor.

"What is this place?" Finn asked, awed by the large area.

"I think it used to be a mall or something. Now it's the lair of the Spider Queen." She did a spooky voice when she said the words 'Spider Queen'.

"And she's got the magical armor?" Finn asked, pulling his sword free from his back.

"Yeah, it's gonna be the best armor you've ever seen!" Marceline floated alongside Finn as the pair made their way through the ruins, Finn pausing every few minutes to stare at one of the empty buildings.

"Hey Marceline, any idea what an 'American Eagle' is?" He was standing at one of the larger stores that still had its sign attached.

"Not really. Some kind of bird? Maybe it was a pet store." This seemed plausible enough to the human, so they kept moving. Eventually they came to a corner of the mall that was completely overrun by webs and shrouded in darkness.

"Okay, the Spider Queen's in there. There'll probably be like a ton of little spiders protecting her, and we need to squash them all before we can get to the queen. Once we beat her, we'll get you some armor."

"Let's do it." Finn put on his game face and hefted the large sword. Nodding at Marceline, Finn raised the sword and immediately slashed through the webbing covering the lair. Instantly a swarm of spiders, ranging in size from common garden spiders to the size of Jake, poured through the hole. Finn swung his sword back and forth like a scythe, clearing the waves of arachnids. Marceline used her axe-bass to the same effect, clearing a path through the creepy little monsters. Soon there were no more spiders coming from inside the web, and piles of the eight-legged creatures surrounded the pair.

Finn had gotten bitten a few times, and his face was starting to swell up, along with his arm and one of his ankles.

"Finn! Um, hold on a sec, I know what to do." Without waiting for an answer, Marceline bared her fangs and grabbed Finn. She started to suck out the venom, spitting out the rancid taste as soon as the wounds were clean. Finn immediately started to look better, the swelling going down and the color returning to his cheeks. Though that may have been from embarrassment.

"Um, I won't say anything if you don't?" He offered.

Marceline was also blushing a little at her forwardness, and nodded.

"Alrighty then, let's go squash a really big bug!" He charged into the depths of the spider nest, sword held high, Marceline at his back. He ran forward, past all the dummies and manikins covered in the remains of old clothes, past racks of fabric and material, until he ran smack into a large black sphere in the back of the room. The sphere had to have been at least ten feet tall, and was covered in sparse black hairs.

"What is that?" Finn asked, poking the sphere. He didn't notice eight long, pointy appendages slowly unfurling themselves from the other side of the object. The sphere suddenly swirled around, catching Finn off-guard and sending him flying into Marceline. The Spider Queen, for it was indeed her, was huge!

The large black sphere made up her thorax, and a small abdomen the size of Jake held the connecting points for eight jointed legs, each one at least twelve feet long, ending in a sharp, pointed crook. But where the head on a normal spider would have been was something entirely different. The upper body of a woman sprouted from the spider's abdomen. She was very thin, with bony arms and sickly gray skin. She wore a baggy T-shirt with a web design on it, and her long, messy black hair covered her face.

The Spider Queen let out a bloodcurdling roar and charged the pair. Finn jumped over her clumsy charge and flipped, landing behind her. He swung at her legs, and his sword bounced off the limbs with a resounding _thump_. She screeched and turned towards the human, giving Marceline an opening to slam the flat side of her guitar against the arachnid's head. The spider stumbled for a moment, her eight legs losing coordination. But then a thick strand of sticky white silk shot forth from the Queen's hidden face, and wrapped around Marceline's waist.

"What the-?!" The vampire was pulled sharply, dropping her guitar. The Spider Queen proceeded to wrap Marceline up like a giant fly, muffling her objecting screams, before lifting her up to her mouth.

"_Marceline!_" Finn was panicking; he wasn't going to let some giant spider snack on his friend. He leapt up and slammed his sword against the spider's head. He heard a crack, and the giant arachnid dropped the bundled up Marceline. The spider wrapped her arms around the back of her head, and Finn saw something black dripping from between her fingers. Finn started trying to cut Marceline loose, but the wrapped bundle began to grow. Suddenly it exploded as Marceline erupted out in her demon-bat form.

She grabbed the spider, now the same size as her, and wrestled it to the ground. Finn took the opportunity to jump on top of the squirming monster and positioned his sword above her belly. Just as he was about to bring the sword down, Marceline's voice stopped him.

"Hold up Finn, it won't do anything." It was always weird to hear Marceline's voice coming from one of her creepy demon forms.

"What do you mean?" He didn't move his sword.

"I mean, The Spider Queen is deathless, kinda like my dad. She can't die. But we beat her, and that's all that matters." She shrank back into her humanoid body, and walked over to where the spider's human parts lay motionless. She kicked the humanoid arm a few times. "Wake up, Karen. We both know you're fine."

The spider slowly rose upright, and her hands brushed the black hair out of her face. The face revealed was that of a kindly old woman, round with age and wrinkled with countless laugh lines. Her eyes were shiny and black. "Oh, Marceline, dearie. How nice to see you again." Her voice was one that immediately brought to mind a loving grandmother.

"Hey Karen. This is Finn. I brought him here to get some magical armor." Finn was kind of shocked that Marceline was being so calm around a creature that had just tried to eat her. The spider -or, Karen- rose to her eight legs and scuttled over to Finn. "Hmm, yes, I think I know just what to do for him."

"Wait, you're not mad I bopped your head in?" Finn asked, surprised.

"Oh no, no, no. That's how it works; you have to beat me in a fight to get my help. So, let's get you set up." Karen reached a long leg out and hooked a giant black chest. The container was very, very old; the wood was warped and stained with age, the metal tarnished black. Finn couldn't hide his excitement. He expected the chest to hold a suit of chain-mail, or plate armor, or a magical amulet that would surround him in protective magic. But when she opened the chest, it was filled with...

Sewing supplies.

Karen pulled out a tape measure and started taking measurements of Finn's torso and arms.

"Um... what are you doing?"

"I need to know how big to make the clothing, dearie." After a few minutes of taking measurements, Karen scurried to a back room, and Finn heard some odd noises.

"So, she's making me armor?" Finn asked, confused.

"Yeah. Karen's the best tailor in the whole world. She can make you some magical cloth that will make the perfect armor."

After about an hour of waiting, Karen came back into the main room, holding a bundle of black fabric. "Try this on for size, sweetie."

Finn took the garment and shook it out to reveal a black hooded sweatshirt. It was made of the Spider Queen's silk, and was impossibly soft and strong. He slipped it on, and a pattern of crossed spider webs shone along the surface for a moment. The hoodie fit surprisingly well, like a slightly larger second skin.

"This is awesome. Thanks!"

"We still have to test it, Finn." Marceline pointed out, picking up her guitar.

"How are we gonna do that-" Marceline suddenly swung the sharp edge of her axe at Finn's back. The weapon stopped as soon as it hit the fabric.

"Good job, Karen. As always. See you later!" Marceline picked up Finn, still reeling from the sudden attack, and flew them both out of Karen's lair. She landed them back at the tree house just as the sun was starting to rise.

"Thanks again, Marcie. This thing is awesome!" Finn pulled at the front of his jacket. "How does it look?"

"Really cool, actually. Black looks good on you." Finn blushed a little, then suddenly grabbed Marceline in a bear hug. He let go again a second later, looking at the ground. "Um, sorry. I got kind of worried when it looked like Karen was gonna eat you. Don't do stuff like that again, okay?"

Marceline knew she could annoy Finn forever with that little outburst, but she was too distracted by the fact that Finn had been worried about her. She awkwardly hugged Finn back, and said, "It's okay, Finn. I'm not going anywhere."

Finn broke off and nodded, and Marceline started home, but before she could leave Finn pecked her on the cheek before closing the door.

Marceline just stood there for a moment, before slowly smiling and floating back to her cave.

* * *

Marceline and Finn came out of the memory smiling, remembering their past adventures. Finn took the magical hoodie from Marceline's arms and held it close before starting to drift back to sleep. Marceline settled into her chair, ready to stay by Finn's side as long as he was sick.

_"__Maybe even longer than that?"_ For once, Marceline didn't try to chide her subconscious. She was too busy gently stroking Finn's cheek again.

* * *

**A/N 2: So, this took a little longer than I thought. So I tried to make it up by adding the story of Finn, Marceline and the Spider Queen. I thought it was funny, and added a tiny bit of fluff. Next chapter in about a week; I have some stuff coming up and won't be able to write for a while. Thanks for reading, and please leave a review if you liked it.**


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